The Tamale Spaceship

• resultPass
• critical violations0
• last inspectedDecember 9, 2025
• address2296 S Blue Island Ave, Chicago 60608
• cuisineCatering

Is The Tamale Spaceship clean?

The Tamale Spaceship is currently Pass from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on December 9, 2025. No critical violations were recorded at that visit. On Cooked's ladder that reads clean 😇.

What did inspectors find at The Tamale Spaceship?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on December 9, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• ⚠️Utensils, Equipment & Linens: Properly Stored, Dried, & Handled • 4-903.11 (A;B;D) : MUST INVERT MULTI-USE UTENSILS ON ALL DISH STORAGE SHELVES.
  Utensils, Equipment & Linens: Properly Stored, Dried, & Handled • 4-903.11 (A;B;D) : MUST INVERT MULTI-USE UTENSILS ON ALL DISH STORAGE SHELVES.
• ⚠️Warewashing Facilities: Installed, Maintained & Used; Test Strips • 4-301.12 : OBSERVED POTS TO LARGE TO BE SUBMERGED INTO 3- COMPARTMENT SINK MUST REMOVE POTS OR PROVIDE A LARGER SINK OR PROVIDE A WRITTEN PROCEDURE ON HOW TO SANITIZE UTENSILS AT 3- COMPARTMENT SINK PROPERLY.
  Warewashing Facilities: Installed, Maintained & Used; Test Strips • 4-301.12 : OBSERVED POTS TO LARGE TO BE SUBMERGED INTO 3- COMPARTMENT SINK MUST REMOVE POTS OR PROVIDE A LARGER SINK OR PROVIDE A WRITTEN PROCEDURE ON HOW TO SANITIZE UTENSILS AT 3- COMPARTMENT SINK PROPERLY.
• 🚿plumbing acting up
  Non-Food/Food Contact Surfaces Clean • 4-601.11(C) : MUST CLEAN INTERIOR PARTS OF ICE MACHINE.
• 🚻bathroom / plumbing issues
  Plumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices • 5-204.12 : OBSERVED NO BACKFLOW DEVICE ON ICE MACHINE TO BE SEEN FOR SERVICING MUST PROVIDE AND MAINTAIN. • 5-205.15 : OBSERVED SEVERAL HOLES IN LID OF SUMP PUMP MUST MAKE LID TIGHT FITTING AND SECURE TO PREVENT RODENT ENTRY.
• 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
  Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • -201.13 : MUST REPAIR OR REPLACE DAMAGED ON WALLS NEAR REAR EXIT DOOR,DAMAGED FLOOR TILE IN 1ST FL. STORAGE AREA,HOLES IN CONCRETE FLOOR IN BASEMENT.
• ⚠️All Food Employees Have Food Handler Training • 2-102.13 : MUST PROVIDE FOOD HANDLERS TRAINING FOR NEW EMPLOYEE AND MAINTAIN.
  All Food Employees Have Food Handler Training • 2-102.13 : MUST PROVIDE FOOD HANDLERS TRAINING FOR NEW EMPLOYEE AND MAINTAIN.
• 🥜allergen training missing
  Allergen Training As Required • 2-102.13 : MUST PROVIDE FOOD ALLERGEN TRAINING FOR ALL FOOD MANAGERS.

When was The Tamale Spaceship last inspected?

The Tamale Spaceship has 13 inspections on record going back to July 13, 2018. The 12 most recent are shown below.

The Tamale Spaceship vs Lower West Side

Lower West Side runs 68% clean across 1,153 tracked restaurants — 775 clean, 162 mid, 205 cooked.

Against the 1,153 spots Cooked tracks in Lower West Side, this one comes out cleaner than 34% of them.

Other spots in Lower West Side

• ✓ Ghin Khao Eat Rice
  clean · July 10, 2025
• ? Donald's Hot Dog
  cooked · June 21, 2011
• ✓ Cafe Media Noche
  clean · September 4, 2018
• ✓ Let's Eat Thai
  clean · September 18, 2019
• ✓ La Hacienda Brands, Inc
  clean · November 14, 2018
• ✓! Coastline Catering
  mid · May 23, 2019

See every restaurant inspection in Lower West Side →

How Chicago grades restaurants

Chicago does not use letter grades. Every inspection ends in one of three official results: Pass, Pass with Conditions, or Fail. Pass with Conditions means violations were found but corrected on the spot or under a deadline — the restaurant is open, with homework. A Fail means serious violations went uncorrected, and it usually brings a re-inspection within days. Chicago also flags “priority” violations, the ones most likely to actually make someone sick. Cooked reads Pass as clean, Pass with Conditions as mid, and Fail as cooked, and shows the itemized violations behind each result.

Source: Chicago Department of Public Health via Chicago Data Portal. Cooked refreshes this data daily — this listing's most recent inspection is dated December 9, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.